


The Cat

by MidnightWolf



Series: Randomly Generated [4]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Attempted Kidnapping, F/M, Non-Sexual Slavery, Shapeshifting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-11-09 02:26:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17993096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidnightWolf/pseuds/MidnightWolf
Summary: Natalya doesn't deserve loyalty like this.





	The Cat

**Author's Note:**

> Generated Prompt: Belarus/Canada, Slavery, Animals

“Let go of me!”

Natalya had woken as she was yanked out of her warm bed, large hands wrapped around her hair and one of her wrists. She struggled and fought, but had reacted too slowly to grab the knife beneath her pillow. She was pushed to the floor, a knee buried in her back and holding her in place as her arms were harshly forced together.

A loud hiss seemed to echo in the room and the attacker cried out in pain, releasing his grip enough that Natalya was able to pull her arms free and lash out with her legs, kicking him away and giving her a chance to scramble to her feet and lunge for the bed and her knife.

Knife in hand, Natalya turned to face her would-be kidnapper just in time to see the small white cat being kicked across the bedroom. The man's face was bleeding.

The rage of seeing _her_ Mattie being attacked for defending her blinded Natalya, pure instinct driving her forward with her knife. She attacked his gut, driving the jagged blade in up to the hilt and then dragging it out at an angle, the acrid stench making it clear that she'd damaged his intestines. Then she went for the soft tissue of his shoulders, just beneath the bone, disabling his arms in quick succession. A final quick slash of the blade drew it across his eyes, blinding him.

With the attacker disabled, Natalya ran for the limp cat, the bloody blade tucked into the sash of her nightgown. She fell to her knees and reached out for the cat. Mattie was still, but when her fingers brushed through his fur, he moved, blinking those bright blue eyes up at her.

“You stupid cat!” Natalya hissed at him, her eyes burning as Mattie meowed and licked her fingers. “What the hell do you think you were doing?! I had it under control!” She wanted to hear what he had to say for himself, so she silently ordered him to shift.  The collar activated and the cat whimpered, body contorting and stretching until it was a naked human man sprawled out on the floor. One arm bent at an awkward angle, and an ugly bruise beginning to darken across the side of his torso.

“I'm sorry, Mistress.”  Mattie's apology was sincere, his eyes wide and his words quiet

Natalya could only gape, completely at a loss for words. She'd never been kind to her slave. He'd been a gift from her older sister, a consolation prize to distract her from the fact that she wasn't allowed to join the raids. His foot was still badly bruised from where she'd stomped on his paw as a cat only the day before, for no reason other than existing near her. And yet he'd defended her. He could have been killed for protecting her, and even now, he only accepted her anger and apologized

“You should be sorry!” Natalya lashed out, hating the strange emotions that twisted in her gut. She didn't know what to think, and that only made her more angry. “No one told you to interfere like that!”

Mattie just smiled up at her, despite the pain in his soft, blue eyes. Then he shifted back into a cat, his preferred form, and began to limp toward her, his wounded forepaw tucked up against his body. Natalya choked on air, struggling to swallow, but she reached out, gently scooping her cat into her arms and cradling him close.

She'd done nothing to deserve his loyalty or his forgiveness, and yet he'd given it to her anyway. He smiled at her like he'd forgotten every bruise she'd inflicted and every harsh word she'd ever shouted at him. The rasp of Mattie's rough tongue against Natalya's chin was the final straw as she curled over his small body and began to cry into his fur.

 


End file.
